longevity
Americannoun
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a long individual life; great duration of individual life.
Our family is known for its longevity.
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the length or duration of life.
research in human longevity.
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length of service, tenure, etc.; seniority.
promotions based on longevity.
noun
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long life
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relatively long duration of employment, service, etc
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Etymology
Origin of longevity
From the Latin word longaevitās, dating back to 1605–15. See longevous, -ity
Explanation
Something with longevity has the ability to last for a long time. While tortoises are not known for their quickness, their longevity is amazing. Just ask the Hare. At the root of longevity is the word long. So when you see longevity, think “a long time." In fact, this word has some serious longevity, since it's been around since the 1600s. Longevity is most commonly used to describe the length of one’s lifetime, but it can also mean a long duration, such as one’s longevity working for a certain company for an extended period of time.
Vocabulary lists containing longevity
100 Top "SAT" Words
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List 1
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Dr. Martin Luther King Jr.'s "I've Been to the Mountaintop" (1968)
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
He said that the franchise's longevity was due to "all the people like you and your parents and your grandparents, because of their intelligence and their sensitivity and their vision" in supporting Gene Roddenberry's concept.
From Barron's ● Jul. 26, 2026
He recently put Claude AI to the test, posing as a healthy, single, 62-year-old woman with some savings who wants to retire at 65 but harbors longevity and inflation concerns.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 24, 2026
In the clip, Cronenberg talks about the legacy of art, and whether longevity really matters.
From BBC ● Jul. 24, 2026
Doctors also see preventive medicine as a key to preserving longevity.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
But of all of music’s contributions to the human condition, its ability to create social cohesion and communicate emotion has ensured its longevity.
From "Music and the Child" by Natalie Sarrazin
A team of researchers recently analyzed the longevities and lifestyles of nearly 1,000 species of mammals, ranging from aardvarks to zebras.
From Scientific American ● Jan. 31, 2023
For each of these types of tissues, propose a reason based on internal and external factors and function that might account for the differences among their longevities.
From Textbooks ● Jun. 9, 2022
Hufeland again remarks that the greatest longevities pertain to wise and well-regulated lives.
From Lectures on the true, the beautiful and the good by Cousin, Victor
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
